Live (but footsore) from the British Open

    St. Andrews is a place I have wanted to visit ever since I first saw it during a British Open broadcast many years ago.  I knew of it as the birthplace of golf long before I discovered it was the birthplace of Presbyterianism.  So this post I will talk about golf.
   My friend Loren Roberts is playing here this week for the 150th Open Championship.   He was kind enough to procure a pass for me, and another friend found housing—with Dave Reinhardt while his wife and daughter are back in the US visiting family.  Dave is a PhD student at the University of St. Andrews, 3rd oldest university in the English-speaking world and his wife was on IV staff at Davidson.  Dave is someone I probably have bumped into without knowing it in the past—for instance, he attended our Following Christ conference in Chicago a year-and-a-half ago.  He is in a program called the "Institute for Theology, Imagination, and the Arts".  Let's start one of those at the MIT Media Lab!

   But back to golf.  Did you know that the Apostle Paul played golf?  He talked about his problems with his swing in Romans 7:  "I don't understand what I do.   What I wish to do I do not do, and what I do not wish to do I do."  I have experienced that many times on the golf course... but off the course as well.  Loren experienced some of that today.  Putts—his bread and butter—would not drop, and he found himself in one of the nasty pot bunkers that sit right in the middle of the fairway...  He played in the second group out this morning, at 6:40 AM and with a bit of jet lag did not get much sleep.  I didn't either (I hate being up that early without jet lag!) but I did not have to play in the grand-daddy of all golf tournaments.  The weather was mostly drizzle with occasional rain, and in the end he shot a one-over on his round.  Which is not good, as the weather improved by mid morning and with soft greens and fairways the scores have been very good.  Ah, well.

   Last night Dave and I ate dinner and while he went to his small group I walked in the rain to the course, in the vain hope the "Ticket Collection office" (what we call WillCall) would still be open.  I stumbled upon the 18th fairway, which ends right in the town, and is a famous and iconic view.  I took the picture above of the bridge over Swilken Burn at 8:30 pm in the fog and rain, and when I passed by the 17th green a few minutes later was startled to see some of the players still out on the course practicing...